Your Complete Q1 2014 Anime Guide

With the end of the year, we have come to the end of the Q4 2013. But with 47 new anime in the pipeline, how do you know which ones to watch? Check out the trailers and brief blurbs about each to see which of them catches your interest.

[*Note: Series are grouped loosely by genre.]

Silver Spoon Season 2

Genre: Slice of Life, Comedy
Premier Date: January 10, 2014
Where to Watch:CrunchyrollWhat It's About in One Sentence: The second season of one of last year's bestanime which follows a boy from the city who attends an agricultural high school out in the countryside.

Seitokai Yakuindomo *

Genre: School Life, Comedy
Premier Date: January 4, 2014
Where to Watch:CrunchyrollWhat It's About in One Sentence: The second season of an anime about a boy who enters a formerly all-girl high school and is forced to be the student council vice president.

Tonari no Seki-kun: The Master of Killing Time

Genre: School Life, Comedy
Premier Date: January 6, 2014
Where to Watch:CrunchyrollWhat It's About in One Sentence: This is a short-form anime about a young girl who is constantly distracted in class by the crazy antics of the boy sitting next to her.

Saki: The Nationals

Genre: School Life, Sports
Premier Date: January 6, 2014
Where to Watch:CrunchyrollWhat It's About in One Sentence: The second season of an anime about a high school girl in a mahjong club.

Tesagure! Bukatsumono Encore

Genre: School Life, Slice of Life
Premier Date: January 12, 2014
Where to Watch: No Western Simulcast Announced
What It's About in One Sentence: The second season of a short-form anime about a group of school girls and their extracurricular activities.

Sakura Trick

Genre: Romance, School Life
Premier Date: January 10, 2014
Where to Watch:CrunchyrollWhat It's About in One Sentence: Two longtime female friends, afraid of drifting apart as they enter high school, decide to share a kiss — and thus begin a relationship of a different nature.

Genre: Romance, Comedy
Premier Date: January 9, 2014
Where to Watch:CrunchyrollWhat It's About in One Sentence: This is the second season of an anime about a high school boy who used to suffer fantastical delusions and a girl who is still suffering from them.

No-Rin

Genre: Comedy, Romance
Premier Date: January 11, 2014
Where to Watch:FunimationWhat It's About in One Sentence: A high school boy at an agricultural school finds that his newest classmate is his favourite idol who quit performing recently under mysterious circumstances.

Onee-chan ga Kita

Genre: Comedy, Romance
Premier Date: January 9, 2014
Where to Watch:CrunchyrollWhat It's About in One Sentence: When a teenage boy's father remarries in this short-form anime, he finds he has a new sister — one who is in love with him to a disturbing degree.

Genre: Comedy, Romance, Supernatural
Premier Date: January 4, 2014
Where to Watch:CrunchyrollWhat It's About in One Sentence: To move on to the afterlife, the ghost of a dead girl must fall in love with a boy by possessing the body of his step-sister.

NiseKoi

Genre: Comedy, Romance
Premier Date: January 12, 2014
Where to Watch:Aniplex USAWhat It's About in One Sentence: The son of a Yakuza crime boss finds himself engaged to a rival gang leader's daughter that he hates but must pretend to like to keep peace between the gangs.

D-Frag!

Genre: Comedy, Romance
Premier Date: January 7, 2014
Where to Watch:FunimationWhat It's About in One Sentence: A high school boy fancies himself a real bad boy but his behaviour is nothing compared to that of the four girls he becomes entangled with.

Engaged to the Unidentified (Mikakunin de Shinkoukei)

Genre: Comedy, Slice of Life
Premier Date: January 9, 2014
Where to Watch:CrunchyrollWhat It's About in One Sentence: An ordinary 16-year old girl finds out she is betrothed to a boy — who then moves into her house along with his little sister.

Soni-Ani: Super Sonico The Animation

Genre: Comedy, Ecchi
Premier Date: January 6, 2014
Where to Watch:CrunchyrollWhat It's About in One Sentence: This is an anime about a rock star/pin-up model and her busy life.

Wake Up, Girls

Genre: Comedy, Slice of Life
Premier Date: January 11, 2014
Where to Watch:CrunchyrollWhat It's About in One Sentence: A struggling celebrity management company makes a last ditch gamble to create a female pop idol group by scouting completely unknown talent.

Go! Go! 575

Genre: Comedy, Slice of Life
Premier Date: January 10, 2014
Where to Watch: No Western Simulcast Announced
What It's About in One Sentence: A Sega-made Vita game tie-in anime about a pair of girls who become pop idols.

47 Todoufuinu R

Genre: Comedy
Premier Date: January 12, 2014
Where to Watch: No Western Simulcast Announced
What It's About in One Sentence: A new season of a short-form anime following a group of dogs that are anthropomorphic versions of Japan's 47 prefectures.

Nyan-Men

Genre: Comedy
Premier Date: January 12, 2014
Where to Watch: No Western Simulcast Announced
What It's About in One Sentence: A short-form anime about a group of ramen-inspired cat girls.

Strange+

Genre: Comedy, Mystery
Premier Date: January 10, 2014
Where to Watch:CrunchyrollWhat It's About in One Sentence: A short-form anime where, after finding that his missing brother has become the head of a detective agency and refuses to return home, a young man decides to join him in solving mysteries.

Wooser's Hand-to-Mouth Life: Awakening Arc

Genre: Comedy, Sci-Fi
Premier Date: January 8, 2014
Where to Watch:CrunchyrollWhat It's About in One Sentence: The second season of a short-form anime about a cute but evil creature.

Chou Zenmairobo: Patrasche

Genre: Comedy, Sci-Fi
Premier Date: December 7, 2013
Where to Watch: No Western Simulcast Announced
What It's About in One Sentence: When the empire invades their country, a boy who wants to become a scientist — as well as his friend and their dog — decide to fight back in this short-form anime.

Inari, Konkon, Koi Iroha

Genre: Comedy, Romance
Premier Date: January 15, 2014
Where to Watch:FunimationWhat It's About in One Sentence: As thanks for saving a fox pup, a fox god grants a young unpopular girl the ability to shape-shift.

Pupipoo

Genre: Comedy, Modern Fantasy
Premier Date: December 21, 2013
Where to Watch: No Western Simulcast Announced
What It's About in One Sentence: A short-form anime about a girl, bullied because of her ability to see things others can't, befriends a floating pink blob who protects her from supernatural monsters.

Witch Craft Works

Genre: Comedy, Fantasy
Premier Date: January 5, 2014
Where to Watch:CrunchyrollWhat It's About in One Sentence: A high school boy discovers that the most popular girl in school is, in fact, a powerful witch and her sole job is to protect him from harm.

Hoozuki no Reitetsu

Genre: Fantasy, Comedy
Premier Date: January 10, 2014
Where to Watch:CrunchyrollWhat It's About in One Sentence: As an aid to The Great King of Hell, a demon tries to resolve the problems in Hell while making time for his own peaceful hobbies.

Yokai Watch

Genre: Japanese Modern Fantasy, Comedy
Premier Date: January 8, 2014
Where to Watch: No Western Simulcast Announced
What It's About in One Sentence: Based on a game by Level-5, this is an anime about a child who uses his special watch to collect data on Yokai (traditional Japanese monsters).

Minna Atsumare! Falcom Gakuen

Genre: Comedy, Fantasy
Premier Date: January 5, 2014
Where to Watch: No Western Simulcast Announced
What It's About in One Sentence: A short-form anime about JRPG-style characters messing around in a JRPG fantasy-style world.

Hamatora

Genre: Mystery, Sci-Fi
Premier Date: January 8, 2014
Where to Watch:CrunchyrollWhat It's About in One Sentence: Two detectives with mutant powers begin investigating a series of murders of fellow mutants.

The Pilot's Love Song (Toaru Hikuushi e no Koiuta)

Genre: Adventure, Drama
Premier Date: January 6, 2014
Where to Watch:CrunchyrollWhat It's About in One Sentence: A prince who has lost everything leaves his kingdom on a quest of hatred and revenge but learns about friendship and love as he travels.

Ghost in the Shell Nyumon Arise

Genre: Documentary, Sci-Fi
Premier Date: January 6, 2014
Where to Watch: No Western Simulcast Announced
What It's About in One Sentence: This is a short-form making-of documentary series about Ghost in the Shell: Arise hosted by two animated characters.

Pupa

Genre: Horror, Fantasy
Premier Date: January 10, 2014
Where to Watch:CrunchyrollWhat It's About in One Sentence: This short-form anime follows a boy hunting for the cure to his sister's disease — a disease causing her to sprout grotesque wings and attack people.

Noragami

Genre: Action, Fantasy
Premier Date: January 5, 2014
Where to Watch:FunimationWhat It's About in One Sentence: A young god — struggling to gain followers — scrawls his number on a bathroom wall, claiming to help people for a mere five yen offering.

Nobunaga the Fool

Genre: Sci-Fi, Mecha
Premier Date: January 6, 2014
Where to Watch:CrunchyrollWhat It's About in One Sentence: When Jeanne Kaguya D'Arc and Leonard Da Vinci travel from the "Western planet" to the "Eastern planet," they begin an adventure that will change the fate of both worlds.

Buddy Complex

Genre: Mecha, Sci-Fi
Premier Date: January 6, 2014
Where to Watch:FunimationWhat It's About in One Sentence: After being attacked by a giant robot and then saved by his classmate (in her own giant robot), a young boy starts on the path to become a mecha pilot.

Space Dandy

Genre: Sci-fi, Action
Premier Date: January 5, 2014
Where to Watch:Funimation, Animax (Asia), Madman (AU), Wakanim (UK)
What It's About in One Sentence: From the creators of Cowboy Bebop and Samurai Champloo comes the story of an alien hunter who is the "dandiest man in space."

Nobunagun

Genre: Action, Sci-Fi
Premier Date: January 5, 2014
Where to Watch:Crunchyroll, FunimationWhat It's About in One Sentence: While on a fieldtrip, a high school girl is attacked by monsters and discovers she is able to wield a mystical weapon infused with the soul of legendary samurai general, Oda Nabunaga.

Wizard Barristers

Genre: Modern Fantasy, Action
Premier Date: January 13, 2014
Where to Watch:CrunchyrollWhat It's About in One Sentence: In a world much like ours but with magic, a teenage girl becomes the country's youngest defence attorney for wizards.

Magical Warfare (Mahou Sensou)

Genre: Action, Modern Fantasy
Premier Date: January 10, 2014
Where to Watch:CrunchyrollWhat It's About in One Sentence: One day, a normal high school boy comes across a girl collapsed at his school who turns out to be a magician — and has turned him into one as well.

Z/X Ignition

Genre: Action, Sci-Fi
Premier Date: January 10, 2014
Where to Watch:CrunchyrollWhat It's About in One Sentence: Based on a trading card game, this anime focuses on creatures invading Earth from other worlds.

Maken-ki! Two

Genre: Ecchi, Action
Premier Date: January 15, 2014
Where to Watch:FunimationWhat It's About in One Sentence: The second season of a "many-boob, school, action, love, comedy" anime about a boy who unwittingly enters a school where the students partake in magical combat.

World Conquest: ZVEZDA PLOT

Genre: Action, Comedy
Premier Date: January 12, 2014
Where to Watch:Aniplex USAWhat It's About in One Sentence: An anime about a young girl and her group of bad guys trying to take over the world.

Double Circle

Genre: Sci-fi, Superhero
Premier Date: December 19, 2013
Where to Watch:YouTubeWhat It's About in One Sentence: A short-form anime where Four super heroes who personify alternate energy sources — wind power, water power, green power, and solar power — protect the city of Kawasaki.

Robot Girls Z

Genre: Superhero, Comedy
Premier Date: January 4, 2014
Where to Watch: No Western Simulcast Announced
What It's About in One Sentence: A short-form anime about a group of female superheroes — each based on a different giant robot from long-running anime Mazinger — who promote the new power source "photon energy" and protect it from those who would abuse it.

Happiness Charge Pretty Cure

Genre: Magical Girl
Premier Date: February 2, 2014
Where to Watch: No Western Simulcast Announced
What It's About in One Sentence: The 11th season of the long running Pretty Cure anime about a group of school girls who transform and fight evil.

Meitantei Rascal

Genre: Children's, Mystery
Premier Date: January 9, 2014
Where to Watch: No Western Simulcast Announced
What It's About in One Sentence: This anime follows a raccoon detective and his bear assistant as they solve mysteries.

Pic-lele

Genre: Children's, Music
Premier Date: December 7, 2013
Where to Watch: No Western Simulcast Announced
What It's About in One Sentence: A cute short-form anime for children about a group of ukulele-playing animals.

Future Card Buddy Fight

Genre: Yu-Gi-Oh!
Premier Date: January 4, 2014
Where to Watch:Youtube,
What It's About in One Sentence: An anime series based on a collectible card game about children who battle by using cards to summon monsters.

Comments

qwed Guest

Jan 11, 2014, 6:08pm

If only cartoon network had this many new shows instead of just adventure time and avatar.

Note: I do not list anything second season as if you have watched and enjoyed the first season, you'll be picking up the second. Also this list is compiled by myself and several constant anime watching friends who work in the anime/manga/Otaku retail industry; most of us have over 20 years of experience in watching anime and selling the products. List dated for 11 January 2014 - Nothing beyond this date has been checked out as it has not aired yet.

oh come on, hamatora isnt TERRIBLE. none of the points you mentioned are actually that bad, and the premise is good. If anything it reminds me of a less serious darker than black.

if you want to hate something, its pupa. i usually like to give things a chance, but after one 5 minute episode i can already say its trash. i mean come on; a girl looks at red butterflies, and turns into a cannibalistic abomination? and its not even executed well.

I'll agree that the first ep of D-Frag! was bad. The premise set it up like "Sakurasou no Pet na Kanojo" but that wasnt one of my favorite seasons either. Ep one was very disconnected and I dont think it'll be very big this season.

Hoozuki is utterly charming though and the animation is great. I'm not sure what your problem is with it. The humour might be a bit over the head for those that don't get Japanese culture, but there's still a lot to like about it. I think the source material won an award as well.

I'd kick space dandy out of the top spot and put in Chuunbyou. As for the new seasons, Tonaru No Seki-Kun and buddy Complex are my picks for this seasons tops. Nobunagun is interesting but I feel it'll devolve into a preteen/teen fighting anime and not be worth anybody's time. I'm interested in Nisekoi after reading the manga, but without an ending in sight I'm homing that they finish somewhere logical, like the romeo and juliet arc. Toaaru Hiikushi e no Koiuta looks interesting, with the osprey like planes and the flying islands and all. I'll watch the first few eps before deciding to drop or follow it.

I'd also no rule out Ghost In The Shell Arise, another episode may come out this season. Also, Code Geass: Akito the Exhile may have a new episode on the way too. Not to mention another Gundam Unicorn episode aswell. Also look out for Kill La Kill, it's running out to a full 26 eps, and ep 13 was a killer

The Pilot’s Love Song (Toaru Hikuushi e no Koiuta) Seems like fun, hopefully not too many "boobs moments" and has that adventure feel.
Nobunaga the Fool (Over the Top Mecha it looks like)
Space Dandy (By far the most interesting looking anime of this season)

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